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Snailbeach Lead Mine Surface
Virtual Tour |
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[click thumbnails
to see larger version of picture] PARK IN THE VILLAGE HALL CAR PARK
(SJ373022) This is on the right as you climb the hill
from the Shrewsbury-Bishops Castle road.
If it is full then you can park on the grass area to the side and
below. Parking is free and there are
toilets here, as well as a children’s play area on the grass below. There is a display board on the outside wall of the
toilet block that will give you some basic information on the mine and there
are more as you go around. Some distance away
from the mine itself, in Hope Valley, is the portal of Wagbeach Level
(SJ364025) This is the drainage level
of the mine and here are the remains of a 36ft waterwheel that, at an early
stage of the working of Snailbeach, drove the pumps to drain the mine. These are on private land but a footpath
goes close to it. Wagbeach Level is
1,200 yards long, reaching the mine at George's Shaft at a depth of 112
yards. With your back to
the car park, turn right along the road for about 100 yards, passing the
Village Hall. On the right is a
bridleway going down to the left of a white house. Follow this down and round the corner on
the right you will find the grilled entrance to Scott Level. This is a mystery as it leads to extensive
passages that are not connected to Snailbeach Mine. CROSS THE ROAD TO THE SIGN UP TO
LORDSHILL. GO THROUGH THE SMALL WOODEN GATE AND WALK UP THE HILL
ALONG THE PATH If
you look back, there are fantastic views across the valley. On the left are the
remains of an Engine House. The
Halvans Company were processing the tips here between 1911-1930s and the
engine house was used to operate the machinery. There was a small rectangular chimney,
which was actually false, being used for a fireplace on the first floor. In the east wall was an A-frame as part of
the brickwork and this was where the drive for the conveyor ran out of the
building. The cylinder foundations and
a flywheel pit are inside the engine house, these operated a crusher and
screens which lay on the west side of the building. The old white tips have now been grassed
over. An estimated 8,000 cubic metres
of mine spoil were removed from the tips for backfilling unsafe underground
workings and this was added to over 2,000 tonnes of grout. CARRY ON UP THE TRACK. WHERE IT FLATTENS OUT, GO THROUGH ANOTHER GATE AND CROSS THE ROAD TO
A SIGN TURN RIGHT ALONG A TRACK NEXT TO THE FENCE
TURN LEFT IN FRONT OF A BUILDING WITH BIG
DOORS
The following old pictures are of the
locomotives working THEN & NOW Towards the end of the
railway's life, the trucks were hauled by a tractor instead of a steam
locomotive. In the loco shed is an old Fordson tractor
that was found abandoned on site. It
is believed to have been used at one stage for operating machinery at the
Upper Works but it is not known if this was the tractor used to haul trucks. GO OUT OF THE LOCO SHED AND FOLLOW THE
RAILS The rails soon disappear under the surface
of the modern track but you will come to two stone abutments. This was a bridge where waste rock from the
mine was pushed in wagons over the railway and dumped on the tips. At ground level, you can see the lever that
moved some points. GO BACK TO THE LOCO SHED AND UP THE STEPS On the left is the Mine Office that was used
in the 1950s. The fireplace on the
facing outside wall was a small room where the lead was assayed. On the right is the
Blacksmith's Shop where machinery and tools were made for the mine. This building
is normally kept locked but if you can make arrangements to gain access via
the Visits Co-ordinator if there are no Trust members on site. Inside are a forge
and bellows which have been restored and are operated on Open Days. THEN & NOW This was a separate
blacksmith’s shop for sharpening men’s tools which has now been demolished. Next to it is a small stone
building, which is believed to be a very old Pumping Engine House that
operated in George’s Shaft. In front of the Blacksmith’s
Shop is the filled George's Shaft (750ft), with a wooden headgear that was
rebuilt in July 1999. It is here that the fatalities occurred in 1895 (note
that this originally had two winding wheels but one was removed towards the
end of the 19th Century). |